


Dark Matter

by anothersouladrift



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Action/Adventure, F/M, Romance, Sorry I just can't make myself write this pairing anymore, tasertricks - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-04-01
Updated: 2013-07-04
Packaged: 2017-12-07 01:47:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 14,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/742755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anothersouladrift/pseuds/anothersouladrift
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darcy doesn't belong, but then again, neither does Loki.</p>
<p>WARNING: Incomplete fic, with no plans to finish! Sorry!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Observed Motion

Tony Stark had invited Jane to move to New York to continue her research in Stark Tower, Darcy had found out after walking into her boss’s office to find Jane holding a phone to her ear with her mouth gaping open. Darcy took the phone from Jane’s hand. “Jane’s not in at the moment, but I can take a message for you.”

Then, a woman who introduced herself as Pepper Potts told Darcy about the offer. “Stark Tower… that’s where The Avengers are living, right?” Darcy asked.

“That would be correct.”

“Miss Foster would be delighted to accept. When do we start?” Darcy could hear the woman smile through the phone as she relayed the specifics. Darcy jotted them down quickly, then hung up the phone and turned to Jane. “We’re going to New York!”

\----

It hadn’t taken Darcy long to adjust to life in Stark Tower. She had her own quarters, which was absolutely wonderful after living in a trailer and then SHIELD housing for the past six months. Darcy had completed her Political Science degree thanks to the six credits for the internship with Jane, and shortly after Jane had insisted that she come work for her. Or perhaps SHIELD had insisted. Either way, Darcy knew the most about Jane’s research and thinking process, so where she went, Darcy went. Stark had allotted an entire floor to Jane’s research, which was fortunate, because it turned out that they needed it. The fact that it the entire floor was theirs didn't mean that people didn’t just wonder in, though. That was another thing that Darcy loved about the tower. There were people there besides Jane and Erik for her to talk to. Tony and Pepper lived here. Darcy hardly understood a word that came out of Tony’s mouth when he was working. When he wasn’t, he was a fun guy to be around, with a decent sense of humor, Darcy had been delighted to discover. Pepper had worked hard when they first arrived to make sure they were comfortable. It got to the point where Darcy had to tell Pepper to give her some space because she was so over enthusiastic about having other women in the house. Besides Natasha. Not that Natasha wasn’t a woman, but she was just very… private. Darcy had apologized to Pepper, and then agreed for Pepper to take her shopping, so she was pretty sure she was forgiven. Pepper had found Darcy’s wardrobe lacking in “professional attire,” so it turned out to be a good thing. And then there was Clint, who with his dry humor and chiseled body, Darcy had been initially drawn to. However, after finding Natasha glaring at her, Darcy figured he wasn’t worth the risk of losing any digits. Probably. The other member of the Superhero-Hottie-League was Steve Rogers, whom Darcy was pretty certain she made incredibly uncomfortable. That might have something to do with her making everything he said seem like it was filled with innuendo, but it wasn’t her fault. Some of the things Steve said were practically begging to be made into a ‘that’s what she said’ joke. And it definitely wasn’t her fault if she couldn’t resist occasionally. Doctor Banner also occupied space at Stark Tower, but Darcy rarely associated with him. He seemed like a pretty chill guy, but he kept mostly to himself.

Darcy was really starting to enjoy life in New York. She had a great place to live, a nice workspace, great coworkers, a new ipod; things were most definitely looking up.  While she was a bit surprised when Tony had called a tower meeting, as he hadn’t done anything like that before, she decided not to make any judgements until she had more information. She had drug Jane out of the lab at the right time and made their way to a sort of conference room in one of the upper floors.

Once everyone was gathered, Tony stood up, and faced the group assembled. Darcy glanced around. Everyone was here, except Thor, but apparently Tony was starting.

“So, I’ve called this meeting because we are going to be getting a new housemate. And I thought you guys should know before he gets here. You all know him. Or at least know of him.”

There was a quiet murmur in the room, but Darcy remained quiet, glancing over at Jane, and then back to Tony.

“Thor is in Asgard right now.” Darcy raised an eyebrow at the sudden subject change, but went with it. “Odin has apparently decided on a punishment for Loki.”

Darcy now turned to Jane to see if she had known this. The surprise in Jane’s eyes was evident. So that’s a no. Darcy knew that Loki had been held in Asgard while his father deliberated on a punishment. Apparently trying to enslave an entire realm wasn’t something which had a standard sentence.

“He is going to banish Loki out of Asgard. His punishment is to be stripped of his powers, and cast down to Earth, where he has to learn from his mistakes, and find humility and self enlightenment, or some crap, I wasn’t too clear on that part….” Tony faded out, going silent with a thoughtful look on his face.

“Earth? Why the hell is he coming back?” Clint asked, obviously agitated by this news.

“It would seem to me that Earth is the perfect spot for Loki to find some humility.” Bruce answered this time, making everyone turn to look at him.

Pepper elbowed Tony, who still had a dazed look on his face. “Oh! Right, so anyways, Loki is coming to live at Stark Tower, that’s the other part of the agreement.”

There was an eruption around the room as everyone but Jane, Darcy, and Bruce jumped up and began protesting. Darcy inspected the paint on her fingernails as the noise in the room got louder and louder. She jumped when Tony suddenly raised his voice over the din. “Enough! This is my tower, my building, and I get to say who lives here. I already agreed with Odin, and that’s it. Loki is to be a guest here just as much as any of you.” He glared around the room as he said this, daring anyone to tell him different. The room remained silent, and people’s postures remained very stiff.

“So when’s he getting here?” Darcy finally asked, breaking the silence.

Tony turned to her, “today.” He glanced at his watch. “Right now, if I’m not mistaken.” Just as he finished speaking there was a glimmer behind him, and suddenly Thor, and another man were standing behind him. Thor had a huge smile on his face, and he quickly strode over to where Jane was seated and pulled her into a passionate embrace. Darcy snorted, and then turned to inspect the man who had arrived with Thor. He was tall, dark haired, and had striking green eyes, which were fixed on Thor and Jane with a look of slight horror and disgust playing across his features. Darcy couldn’t blame him. She’d had to witness the Thor v. Jane Tonsil Hockey Match from the front row more times than she cared to count.

When Thor finally managed to tear himself away from Jane’s face he turned back towards Loki. “Brother, come and meet my Jane.”

Loki hesitated, then walked forward slowly, coming to stand beside Thor. He walked with a bit of limp, just barely there, hardly even worth mentioning, except that it was obvious that wasn’t his only injury by the way his face contorted in pain. His hand moved toward his ribs, until he stopped, seeming to catch himself from appearing weak around others. The whole thing lasted for less than a second, and was so subtle that Darcy doubted anyone else noticed.

After they were introduced, Thor pointed to each member of the Avengers, and to Darcy and Pepper, naming them. Darcy was the only one still seated, but she wasn’t too concerned with it. She knew she should probably be more frightened of Loki than she was, but he didn’t have his magic. And she was surrounded by superheroes for God’s sake. And she was currently preoccupied. She was cracking herself up watching each of the Avengers’ reactions to Loki. One of the benefits of constantly being overlooked was that nobody ever actually paid attention to what she did. Natasha and Steve both showed signs of distrust. Clint looked outright furious. Bruce just smiled. Tony mostly just looked impressed with himself. Pepper looked nervous, but also a bit frightened. And Jane looked like she might pee herself. Well that probably had less to do with Loki, and more with the four cups of coffee she’d had that afternoon. But still, hilarious. After the introductions, everyone drifted off to their own areas. Darcy went back to the lab to clean up, as there was no way Jane was going to make it back down to the lab today. Darcy knew from experience that Thor would be pretty much occupying all of Jane’s time for the next few hours at least. It was just too bad that her quarters happened to be on the same floor as theirs. 


	2. First Law of Motion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Objects at rest, stay at rest, and objects in motion stay in motion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shhh. I know, I know I said I would only be posting once a week, but I had a terrible day and I have been working on this fic to make myself feel better, so I decided to post another chapter. So here. Have another chapter.

It was a  few days later, and Darcy hadn’t seen Loki again. She knew he was still in Stark Tower, but the door to his rooms was always shut. Darcy wondered if he had even been out of his quarters yet.

Darcy was dishing up her plate in the kitchen; the other members of the house had already begun dinner. (Except for Thor and Bruce, who apparently was in the middle of an experiment) Tony had just started a story, about the first time he tried testing the Iron Man suit’s boosters in his workshop when Thor’s voice suddenly boomed.

“I do not care, Brother. You are mortal now. You must have sustenance, or you will perish. You cannot keep to your rooms and expect others to cater to you!”

Thor was dragging Loki by the arm, as he spoke, he deposited him in a chair at the table. Walking into the kitchen he grabbed the full plate that Darcy had fixed for herself, and took it. Darcy was as shocked as the rest of their party and couldn’t even protest that it was her plate. Thor practically threw the plate onto the table in front of Loki.

“Eat, Brother.”

Everyone at the table was still, staring at Thor and Loki. Thor glowered down at Loki until he began eating. Then, Thor turned back to the kitchen and began to dish up a plate for himself. After a moment, Tony picked up his story again, and with that everyone began eating. Darcy filled up a plate after Thor (she was lucky there was any food left) and followed him to the table. He sat down between Jane and Loki. The only other available seats were either on Loki’s other side, or all the way on the far end of the table between Tony and Natasha. Darcy shuddered internally, even the thought of getting between those two was frightening. She pulled out the chair next to Loki, and began to eat. She could feel Loki look at her out of the corner of his eye, but he didn’t say anything, so she didn’t either.

After dinner Tony mentioned something about a Star Wars marathon. Which lead to Steve admitting he still hadn’t seen Star Wars. Which lead to Clint and Darcy staring at him with dropped jaws until Thor chimed in stating he had never seen the film either. Tony directed everyone into the entertainment room on that floor, and began setting up the films while Pepper got popcorn going. Clint debated the merits of the classics versus the newer films with Tony, much to the confusion of Steve.

The room was large with several couches, recliners, and chairs situated facing a large television built into the wall. Darcy plopped herself down on the end of one of the couches, placing a bowl of popcorn on the cushion next to her. Tony had just dimmed the lights when Loki entered the room. He scanned it for a moment, and then began to cross the room. The limp was gone, Darcy noted, but he still held himself with a sort of stiffness in his upper body. Darcy snorted softly when he paused just beside the couch which Clint occupied. Clint appeared to flinch when Loki made a slight move towards him. This appeared to please Loki, as when he continued on and sat down at the opposite end of the couch Darcy occupied, he had a small smirk on his face. Just as Darcy began to really get into the movie, she felt a movement beside her as Loki reached for the bowl of popcorn. He appeared to hesitate for a moment, then he picked up a piece and brought it up to inspect it by the light of the film. After gazing at it with startling intensity, he popped it in his mouth. He must have approved, because after that he didn’t have a problem eating the majority of the bowl.

By two a.m. the next morning, the Avengers had seen all three films of the original Star Wars Trilogy. Darcy was exhausted. As she got into bed, she hoped that Jane didn’t expect her to get up at a normal time the next day. Or that day, she guessed technically.

When Darcy woke up two hours later according to the clock on her side table, she wasn’t sure what the cause was. She readjusted the arms that were around her waist and nestled closer to the warm body beside her.

Wait. What?

She had gone to bed alone. For months, if she was being honest. She was in the middle of the Sahara Desert of dry spells. Apparently working for a secret government agency did not go hand in hand with an active social life. Who knew? What was she thinking about?

Oh right! Who the hell was she cuddling with?

She was laying on her side, curled up next to someone who had wrapped their arms around her body, and held her to them. Tightly. Darcy tried to determine who’s chest she was resting her head on. Well, there was a distinct lack of breast, which indicated a male. That was… not necessarily good news. Because the only person she could think of that would hop into her bed uninvited was Jane. And that would be a very, very strange occurrence.

Darcy slowly raised her head from the chest, a bit of her hair falling over her face. She looked past the hair, and oh. Dear. Lord.

What the hell was Loki doing in her bed?

Better question. Loki, God of Mischief, was a cuddler?

His face was bare, void of any emotion. Darcy had never seen him this close before, let alone this unguarded. That was besides the point. What was the point?

Oh yeah.

 What the hell was going on? What was he doing in her bed? What was she supposed to do about him in her bed? Wake him up? Oh my god. She hadn’t even spoken to him yet. The first words she said to him couldn’t be ‘please get out of my bed.’ Darcy leaned back slightly, but he only pulling her closer. Now she was pulled flush against him, chest to knees, with her head curled up in the crook of his neck. Oh god. Fuck it. Darcy decided. He was the one that climbed into her freaking bed. She liked cuddling. And she was too god damn tired to worry about the fact that the person who was cuddling her had tried to take over the world not that long ago. She could freaking worry about it in the morning. Right now she was going to get some god damn sleep.

\----

The next morning when Darcy woke up, she was the only one in her bed. She would have written the whole thing off as a _really_ strange dream, except for the fact that the pillow beside her smelled like Loki. Or what she guessed Loki smelled like. And apparently, he smelled like leather, and mint, and old books, and something else that Darcy couldn't place. Not that she spent time like analyzing the pillow or anything. She had just happened to notice that it smelled different than her pillows normally did. Right.

Sighing, Darcy rolled out of bed. She quickly showered, and got ready before heading up to the shared floor’s kitchen.  As she got her breakfast ready Darcy tried to process exactly what had happened last night. She knew for a fact that she had not invited Loki into her room, let alone her bed. Which meant that somehow he had snuck into her room in the middle of the night. Which meant that he could get into her room. Darcy was pretty sure he wasn’t supposed to be able to do that. Then there was the fact that he was even there at all. No matter how hard Darcy tried, she could not come up with a legitimate reason for Loki to have snuck into _her_ room. It just did not compute. She was a nobody, an assistant, an insignificant worker bee in the great hive that was SHIELD. She didn’t even want to touch why he had chosen to get in bed with her and _cuddle_. Darcy shuddered, and then quickly finished her cereal before heading down to the lab.

Jane hadn’t made it to the lab yet. Darcy snorted, thinking about the astrophysicist’s and the Norse god’s inevitably thrusty reunion. Jane had been arriving late to the lab with dark circles under her eyes every morning since Thor had gotten back. They had to be having freaking monkey sex. Darcy shook her head, trying to clear the mental images that sprung forth, and moved to start the coffee pot that rested on the counter in the back of the lab. As she changed the filter, Jane walked in to the lab.

“Hey!” Darcy said, a little too brightly.

“Mmhmm.” Came Jane’s soft non-reply.

She was barely a person until she got coffee into her system. She sat down heavily on a stool and stared unseeingly at the data and charts in front of her. Darcy smirked, and turned back to the coffee. It had just started brewing, and the smell was ridiculous. Darcy wondered if she should mention the encounter with Loki to Jane. She probably should. Except Jane was irrationally scared of Loki. Well, not irrationally. The man did try to take over the planet after all. But he was rehabilitated now. Or at least was trying, according to Thor. She should tell Jane because if Loki could get into her room, then he could probably get anywhere in the tower. And because you know, he had snuck into her room to snuggle in the middle of the night. Which Darcy knew she should find ridiculously creepy, and should most definitely confront Loki about, or at the very least tell someone what had happened… Only, nothing really had happened. He had broken into her room, true, but he hadn’t actually done anything bad. Maybe he just wanted to snuggle. The thought made Darcy laugh out loud. Jane had laid her head down on the steel of the work desk and didn’t notice. It was probably just an accident, their rooms were on the same floor after all. The timer dinged on the coffee and Darcy poured two cups, then set one beside Jane, and went to her laptop to begin her actual work. Sitting down, she decided to put the entire thing out of her mind.

When Darcy looked up it was already one o’clock. She stood, stretching her arms, then turned to Jane, who was finally looking alive, studying a spreadsheet.

“Do you want anything for lunch?” Darcy asked.She wasn’t bothered when Jane didn’t reply. Sometimes… actually, most of the time, Jane was too enthralled in her work to notice Darcy. She would grab something for her anyways. Darcy pulled her Ipod out of her pocket and plugged in her headphones after she hit the button for the elevator. Darcy was studying the small screen when the doors opened. She stepped inside, registering the nice pair of black dress shoes as belonging to a man. She didn’t lift her head to check though. It was probably just some SHIELD agent there to run paperwork, or something above her security clearance. She bobbed her head along to the music, some upbeat alternative band. She had just downloaded ten new albums and wasn’t sure exactly which she was currently listening to. She pressed the button for the common area. The ride took such a long time that she started humming along to her music, tapping her feet and bobbing her head. She had completely forgotten about the man that was sharing the elevator with her. As the elevator halted she paused her music. The doors slid open, and as she stepped out, she heard a soft chuckle behind her. Whirling towards the doors, Darcy’s mouth gaped as she suddenly recalled that she had, in fact, been sharing the elevator. Darcy’s heart stammered as she was confronted with Loki’s smirking face. He was wearing a black suit, with a dark green tie. The doors slid shut, Loki still smirking. Darcy gaped at the doors for a moment. Well _shit_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thekingsfolly commented that perhaps I needed a beta reader, as some things were formatted incorrectly. I went back through the already posted chapters and tried to fix anything that stood out to me. If you guys notice anything, please, always feel free to comment with the mistake, and I will do my best to fix it. :)
> 
> Also, I realized that I might have gotten some inspiration for the cuddling from "Soft Loki, Sleepy Loki, Little Ball of Cuddles," so I have rewritten that section. Thanks to the lovely reader who pointed the similaritites out to me. It's a great fic, very fluffy, if you're into that sort of thing.


	3. Rogue Planets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A planet never gravitationally bound to any star, brown dwarf or other such object, and that therefore orbits the galaxy directly.

People used to get surprised when Darcy told them that she was a Political Science major.

“Really, but you’re so…”

Darcy loved the look their faces would get as they tried desperately to find a good descriptor for her that wasn’t insulting.

“Honest?” Darcy would have to provide, relief flooding their features.

Because it was true. She was honest. Brutally so. Nearly everything that came to mind made it to her mouth, which was why Darcy actually wanted to get into politics. She wanted to change the world. She wanted to have open, honest communication between countries. She wanted to solve problems by actually discussing them, instead of dancing around the issues, puffing up feathers and stroking egos. She couldn’t stand politicians, and their ability to lie to the people’s faces without a hint of remorse. They were supposed to be running the world for Christ’s sake! Her first encounter with SHIELD only reinforced her belief that the government needed a better transparency policy.

Several Alien Norse Gods later, Darcy was beginning to understand why the government might cover up their existence. Not that she condoned what SHIELD did or anything, it was just well, safer, that the gods of legend be kept from the general population. Or more accurately, that the general population be kept from the gods of legend. Aesir were not population friendly, it turned out. Not to mention that actual confirmation that aliens exist would blow the average Joe’s mind. Not that it mattered anymore, after the whole “Manhattan Incident,” but the majority of the population still believed that it was some type of terrorist attack. Snort. Then again, if you had told Darcy a year ago that aliens were real, she would have laughed in your face. A lot can change in a year. Who knew tasing the God of Thunder would have such an affect?

“Darcy?” Darcy snapped her head in the direction of the voice, being pulled from her reverie.

“Hmmm?” Darcy replied, looking expectantly at Jane.

“Can you grab me some coffee?” Jane asked, raising her empty mug.

“Sure thing.” Darcy stood, straightening the deep purple blouse and black skirt she was wearing. (Thanks, Pepper.)

As she moved to gather the mug from Jane, she took in her apparel. Sigh. Jane was wearing a skirt, and a fairly nice top, but she had on a plaid flannel button up over the top of it. The woman was hopeless.

Darcy headed to the back of the lab and refilled the cup for Jane. She really shouldn’t be having coffee this late in the day. It was nearly four o’clock. Whatever. Darcy didn’t have to deal with her tonight. It was Friday, and Darcy had managed to get Jane to agree to quit (or at least let Darcy go) early for the weekend. Not that Darcy had any great plans or anything, but she had been working hard for the last few weeks, and she felt she deserved a break. Jane had said she could leave at four. Handing the steaming cup to Jane she went back to her desk. She only had five more minutes. Darcy began to save and close down all the files she had open on her computer. By the time she was finished, and had logged off, it was time to go.

“Jane, I’m headed out. Don’t stay too late, okay?” Darcy said, pausing by the door. Jane just nodded her head, pretending to hear what she had said. Darcy smiled to herself and headed out of the lab.

After stopping by her apartment to refresh her makeup, and change her top, Darcy headed out. She hadn’t been out of the tower at all in the last few weeks, and she needed a bit of fresh air. It was nearing five by the time Darcy made it to the club she had picked out. It was near enough Stark Tower that she could walk. The club was already pretty full for so early in the night, but it was Friday. Darcy made her way over to the bar, and finding a stool, hopped up. It took a moment for the bartender to get to her, but after she placed her order, she got her drink quickly.

Darcy wasn’t in the habit of drinking by herself, but honestly, she hadn’t really made any friends in New York yet. When all of the Avengers hung out together, Darcy would join them, but she had yet to do anything one on one with any of them. The Tower had everything that she needed, and she worked there, so there wasn’t really a reason for her to venture out. And within the tower, Darcy felt a bit out of place. She was the most ordinary person that resided there. Everyone else was super-hero, super-brain, super-villain material. Darcy was… Super-Average. Or maybe Super-Talkative. A few guys, and one girl came over and tried to hit on Darcy. Normally Darcy would be flattered by the attention, but she really wasn’t in the mood to flirt. As a rule Darcy didn’t do one night stands; not that there was anything wrong with one night stands, they just weren’t for her. Normally she did like to flirt when she went out, but today, thinking about her lack of drinking buddies had made her a bit depressed. She finished her second drink and exited the club. She was on her way back to the tower when she heard someone calling her name.

“Darcy!” Looking around for the voice, she spotted Cap.. Steve across the street, waving to her. She smiled and returned the wave. He crossed the street, barely avoiding a speeding cab. Honestly did they not have cars in the forties?

“Hey, Steve.”

“Hello, Darcy! What are you up to?” It had taken her two weeks for her to get him to stop calling her Miss Lewis.

“Well I was out for a drink, but it turns out drinking by yourself isn’t as fun as it’s cracked up to be.”

Steve’s brow furrowed. He never got her humor.

“What about you? What are you doing?” Darcy asked.

“Me? Oh, I was just out for a walk and I saw that you were alone. Would you like me to walk you back to the Tower?” He said, offering his arm. Ever the gentleman. Even if it was a bit patriarchal and assuming, she knew Steve didn’t really mean anything by it.

Darcy didn’t take his arm, but started walking. “Would you mind if we just walk a bit? I’m not really ready to go back yet. Sometimes walking into that place feels like walking into the TARDIS for the first time.”

Steve’s frown deepened slightly, but seeing it, Darcy realized her mistake. “Oh, the TARDIS is from a television show. It’s a spaceship that’s bigger on the inside. I just mean that I feel out of place sometimes at the Tower.”

Steve’s face lightened when he didn’t have to ask her to explain the reference. “I know what you mean. And the Tower is a bit like a spaceship with all the technology it houses.”

Darcy didn’t bother to tell him that she didn’t mean the technology. Not that the tech wasn’t awesome. Stark had a freaking computer butler.

They walked quietly for a while, each lost in their own thoughts. Finally Darcy asked for them to head back. Her feet were starting to hurt in her heels. On the way back Darcy got Steve to talk about his hobbies. It turned out that he liked to draw. Darcy wasn’t talented in the arts, but she did appreciate them. As they got to the tower she asked Steve if he would like to go visit a museum some time. Steve blushed, (She had made Captain America blush?) and then stammered out something about her “being a great lady and all,” before Darcy stopped him.

They climbed into the elevator and the doors slid closed as she said, “Steve. It’s not a date. I just could use a friend, and I thought you might need one too. I had a nice time just hanging out with you tonight.”

Realization came to Steve’s face, and he relaxed suddenly. “Oh. Okay then, uh, sure, that would be swell.”

Darcy was pretty proud of herself for not even cracking a smile at his use of antiquated slang.

“Awesome. See you around Steve!” Darcy said, and stepped off the elevator onto her floor. As she walked back to her room, she smiled. Maybe after they went to a museum she could take him out to a bar and watch women hit on him. He could use a bit of loosening up, and it most likely wouldn’t kill him. Darcy decided to make it her mission to get Captain America a girlfriend. 


	4. Accretion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The sticking together of solid particles to produce a larger particle.

Monday morning Darcy woke up a half hour before her alarm was supposed to go off. Ugh. She hated it when that happened. No matter how hard she tried she couldn’t go back to sleep. Sighing, she decided to get up.

Since she had an extra half an hour, she put a bit of extra effort while she got ready. After she curled her hair in loose waves, and did some light makeup, actually wearing contacts for once, she went over to her closet to pick out some clothes. After a bit of deliberation, Darcy decided to wear a dark blue wrap dress, which while making her boobs look great, did not draw any more attention to them. She paired the look with some black round toe heels. They had a strap across the arch, and were only two inches, so they were very comfortable.

Darcy leaned against the counter in her kitchen eating on a Pop tart, waiting for it to be time to head down to the lab. Pepper was truly amazing, Darcy noted as she looked around her flat. Somehow, before ever meeting her, Pepper had managed to decorate her quarters just how she would have herself. If she had half a mil to spend on decorating, that was. The walls were white, but there were lots of bright pieces throughout the rooms, adding splashes of color throughout. The furniture was traditional, and mostly dark leather, with sleek, classic lines. Her quarters opened up into the kitchen, dining, and living area. There was an office, as well as a bedroom and bathroom, which included a full size tub and shower. Darcy loved how Pepper had furnished the residence, and hadn’t felt the need to change anything since she moved in. Noting the time, Darcy finished the Pop tart and headed for the lab.

Darcy was surprised when she got to the lab to discover that not only was Jane there already, she was staring sickeningly, pardon, lovingly, into Thor’s eyes. Darcy usually prided herself on her observation skills. So she was a bit shocked when Thor turned to greet her, and he revealed Loki, who had been standing behind him the whole time. He was decked out in that leather get up that he had arrived in. Feeling her eyes on him, Loki met her gaze. Darcy turned to Jane.

“Loki has agreed to help us with my research.” Jane said simply.

Darcy raised her eyebrows, mostly at the fact that Jane actually managed a full sentence without any caffeine in her system.

“Okay then. And Thor is here because…?”

Not that she minded Thor. It’s just that Jane got … distracted easily when he was present. Which could be a good thing for Darcy sometimes, but she felt that Loki might not take her stopping midsentence to drool over Thor’s face as well as she did. But what did she know. No one responded, but Darcy just shrugged and headed over to the coffee pot.

Jane hadn’t started it yet. The woman could figure out how to locate a freaking worm hole, but a coffee pot was beyond her, Darcy laughed to herself. Darcy got the coffee going, and turned to see what the other occupants of the room were doing. Thor and Jane were hunched over a pile of charts and papers. Loki stood on Jane’s other side, a bit apart, with his arms held stiffly by his sides. The guy was really uncomfortable, if his body language was anything to go by.

Darcy tried not to think about the “Cuddle Incident,” as she had dubbed it. It had happened weeks ago, and Loki hadn’t said a word, and neither had she. She tried not to think about how those arms had felt, wrapped around her waist. Or the fact that she knew exactly how muscular he was under that Aesir armor he and his brother seemed to be wearing constantly. Only that one day in the elevator he had been wearing a suit… BEEP! The coffeemaker startled Darcy and she turned, getting out several coffee cups. She fixed Jane's cup, and her own, automatically. Jane took her coffee and creamer nearly fifty fifty, ew. And she took her’s black. She was just recently out of college, after all. She was pretty sure Thor had black as well. Which left Loki. It was rude not to make him a cup, but she didn’t know how he took his coffee. Or if he even drank coffee. Whatever. Darcy poured him a cup with room for sugar and creamer if he wanted to add it himself.

Darcy took Jane and Thor’s mugs over first. She had learned her lesson about trying to carry more than two cups of hot beverages after an incident in New Mexico involving Eric’s near-sightedness, her natural clumsiness, and a piece of equipment that was quote, “irreplaceable.” ‘Irreplaceable’ her ass, the thing looked like it was cobbled together from a GPS and a toaster.

Jane didn’t look up when she set the mugs down, but Thor thanked her, and patted her on the back. Or what she guessed was supposed to be a pat, as she stumbled back towards the counter, rolling her shoulder. She took her own, and Loki’s cup, and headed back to where they were working. He glanced at her, seemingly surprised by her return. When she held out the mug to him, his eyebrows shot up in surprise. He hesitated for a moment, before taking it from her, careful to avoid her fingers. That was weird, Darcy thought as she turned and headed over to her laptop to start inputting data. As she sat down, she glanced over at the trio. Loki stared down at the mug, and seeming to make a decision, brought it to his lips. Darcy snorted softly.

Freaking aliens, man.

After that, Loki and Thor were permanent fixtures in the lab. With a bit of experimentation, Darcy determined that Loki liked his coffee with a dash of cream.

He managed to say thank you every day, but that first one.He had been startled when the mortal had approached him, treating him as an equal to her friend and his brother. And just when it had started to feel like a routine, one morning Darcy didn’t show up. Loki waited for Jane or Thor to comment on her absence, especially when neither of them took over the coffee machine. It appeared that it fell to him to make the contraption work. It was probably for the best, he thought, as he headed towards the machine. Thor broke every piece of Midgardian technology he touched, and Jane, though surprisingly bright for a mortal, did not seem to have grasped some very basic skills. After a moment of scrutiny, he determined how the machine functioned, and began the brewing. As he waited for the coffee to finish, he pondered the missing mortal. She must have informed Thor and Jane of her absence prior to that morning. Loki tried not to think too hard on why exactly, it mattered to him that the girl was gone. He decided it was because she did not participate in the constant eye making that seemed to plague his brother and Jane. If anything, she seemed as reviled by their constant affection as he was.

Apparently, coffee wasn’t the only thing he had come accustomed to seeing in the morning.

The day drug by, and Loki was surprised at how noticeable the girl’s absence was. He had become accustomed to her off-beat remarks, and having someone to share a look with when Jane and Thor become particularly unbearable.

The next morning when Loki arrived, Darcy was hunched over the coffeepot. She was humming, but he didn’t recognize the tune. He was reminded, briefly, of the time she had forgotten herself in the elevator, and begun to hum along with her music.

“Your coffee was sorely missed yesterday.” Loki surprised himself when the words came out of his mouth. He must have startled Darcy as well, because she straightened suddenly, whirling to face him. Her hand was clutched to her chest.

“Oh my god! You freaked me out!” She dropped her hand, and leaned heavily against the counter behind her.

“Apologies.” Loki answered, but the slight smirk on his face told her he didn’t feel that bad.

She fixed him his usual cup, as well as her own, and carried them both over to the workbench where he had seated himself.

“Always glad to be of service,” Darcy said, in response to his earlier comment.

She knew he didn’t mean anything by it, but for some reason it struck a soft spot. It was one of her biggest fears that everyone here thought exactly what she felt about herself, that she didn’t belong or fit in here. That she really was here just because she could make a half decent cup of coffee, not because of anything that she could actually offer.

Loki saw the slight tightening of her lips as she handed him his coffee. Interesting. The mortal felt inadequate, but she didn’t want anyone to know. He saw it on her face as clearly as if she had said it aloud, though. The God of Lies was not a title he just happened upon. He did not say anything, and by the time he thought maybe he should, she was headed over to her workspace, and then Jane and Thor finally arrived. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all your comments, subscriptions, and kudos on this. I really appreciate them. Obviously I can't keep to any sort of schedule. So expect updates at least once a week, but almost certainly more.


	5. Visible Spectrum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that can be detected by the human eye.

Time passed. The three-month mark of Loki being an official resident of Stark Tower came and went. The majority of his housemates were still skittish around him, the exceptions being Tony Stark, Thor, and surprisingly, the mortal named Darcy. Loki and Stark had come to a sort of begrudging mutual respect, finding they shared a mutual love of wordplay, and general misbehavior, as well as an appreciation for intellectual thinking. Although Loki did not understand Stark when he insisted on going on about Midgardian technology, he did not resent him for it, as Stark did nott understand his own ramblings about magic. Despite that, they still found a lot to converse about. Thor attempted to keep Loki company, of course, but Loki could only take so much of _that_ a day. And he and Darcy, while friendly in the lab, did not associate outside of it. Which meant that Loki spent quite a bit of time by himself. He was used to it, after centuries in Asgard, of course, but he had had his magic to distract him from the forced solitude then. Loki found himself increasingly… bored, was the conclusion he came to as he stepped aboard the elevator, headed down to the lab one morning. The doors were sliding shut behind him when he heard a voice cry out, “Wait!”

Normally Loki would not have hesitated to press the ‘Close Doors’ button on the elevator, but Stark had been gone for several days, and Loki found himself wishing for company of any sort. Still, he surprised himself when he stuck his arm between the closing doors. As the doors slid back he was greeted with Darcy’s smiling face.

She stepped into the elevator beside him. “Thanks so much. I hate having to wait for this stupid elevator. You’d think Stark could design a building with this many floors to have more than one elevator, right? I mean, I could always try the stairs, well, I actually did one day, but uh, never ever doing that again.”

Darcy was wearing a light blue blouse, which had a high collar that tied to the side of her throat. The material was gauzy, and accentuated her curves nicely. She had paired it with a grey pencil skirt, and a pair of matching pumps. Glancing over at Loki, she finally noticed that he hadn’t said anything yet.

“So, uh, how are you this morning?”

Loki’s eyebrows came together for a second before he responded, “Do you mean how am I actually feeling on this morning, or is this an occasion for a preferred standard return greeting?

Darcy burst out laughing, which surprised Loki for the second time that morning. “Well, most people expect the standard response, you know, ‘fine, and you,’ but when I ask how someone is, I tend to genuinely want to know how they are doing.”

“You genuinely want to know how I am doing?”

“I asked, didn’t I?”

Loki appeared thoughtful for a moment. “I am… burdened with the monotony of my current predicament.”

The corner of Darcy’s mouth lifted as she tried to hold back another laugh. Leave it to Loki to turn boredom into an occasion to play with words. “You’re bored? Well do you have any hobbies, or things you do in your spare time? Besides taking over the world, I mean.”

There was a moment of _really_ intense silence before Loki responded, thankfully not smiting her on the spot.

“I do believe that ‘taking over the world’ would qualify as a breach in my … agreement. And my ‘hobby’ used to be mastering magical techniques, but for the moment, that is impossible.”

  “Ah.” Darcy responded with a laugh. “So all we need to do is keep the God of Mischief entertained.”

Loki smirked down at her, “It’s not a simple task.”

“Well where would be the fun in that?” Just then the elevator stilled and the doors opened. Loki waited for Darcy to exit first, and then followed after her. “So any brilliant ideas?” He asked.

Slowing her pace to match his she replied, “Not yet. This is a matter which requires some serious thought.” She said in a teasing tone.

“After all, I wouldn’t want to accidentally cause the start of a prank war now would I? I don’t really think the Avengers would appreciate that very much, although…OH MY GOD!” Darcy exclaimed as she stopped suddenly before the door to the lab. Loki nearly ran in to her, but her tone made him halt quickly, and take a step back.

“What is it? What is the matter?”

Darcy stood with her mouth open, staring at the small rectangular window in the door. Loki moved forward, standing just behind Darcy. The sight he was greeted with made him freeze for a moment as well, before he quickly averted his eyes and tried to avoid gagging. Darcy seemed to be unable to break eye contact. Loki grasped her arm and began walking quickly back to the elevator. “Oh my god! They were…”

“I know.”

“But they were like doing it, right there in the lab!”

“I know.”

“Oh my god. It’s not bad enough that we have to deal with them and the apparently non-soundproofed walls on our floor, but in the lab?”

Loki actually felt himself smile at that. He navigated them back onto the elevator, and pressed the button for the common area. Noting he still had a hand on her arm, he quickly dropped it.

“I think that might be burned onto my retinas. Like, I close my eyes, and it’s still …” Darcy trailed off, twisting her face into a look of disgust.

“Count yourself lucky, mortal. At least you are not related to either member of that sickening exhibition.”

The doors opened, and Loki followed Darcy into the kitchen. She was quiet as she bustled about the room, making tea almost absentmindedly. When she suddenly spoke it took Loki a moment to bring himself out of his own thoughts.

 “Hey now. You didn’t have to witness the freaking love fest in New Mexico. That, that was sickening. I mean really? She hit him with her car, I Tased him, and suddenly they’re in love?”

“Tased him?”

“Oh!” Darcy said, suddenly grinning. “Well a Taser is like this gun which fires electricity. I carry one, and well, he was freaking me out, so I shot him.”

She hesitated, thinking he might be upset at this news, but being met with silence, continued on. “He was flat on his back. It knocked him out for a couple hours.” She couldn’t help the note of pride that snuck into her voice at that.

“You knocked Thor unconscious?”

“Well, yes….”

Loki let out an actual laugh at that. He threw back his head, and it poured out of him, like music, almost. Funny.  Weren’t bad guys supposed to have an evil laugh? Loki’s just sounded… nice. It was the kind of laugh that made you laugh as well, Darcy noted as she joined in.

The kettle began to whistle and Darcy removed it. She filled two cups and then replaced it. She placed one cup in front of Loki and put the other on the counter beside her.

Loki waited until she took a sip of her tea before he spoke again. “I believe you mentioned something about a ‘prank war?’”

Darcy nearly did a spit take. Instead, she swallowed her tea down hard, coughing slightly. “Oh God. Jane is going to kill me.” She said with resignation in her voice. She brightened suddenly. “But this would be epic, right? I mean, you are the freaking God of Mischief… Alright. Let’s start a prank war. Any ideas for our first target?” Darcy asked.

“Well I do believe we owe Jane and Thor for their performance.”

Darcy grinned. 

\----

After the outrageous success of their prank on Jane and Thor, Darcy and Loki had developed a system. Since everyone automatically suspected Loki of being responsible for gluing Jane and Thor together, Darcy began to take the lead role in actually pulling off the pranks, while Loki pulled some minor distraction. Darcy had never pulled many pranks in high school or college, not having many friends with whom to pull them with, or on, but she discovered that she may have missed her calling. She loved the scheming, and the precise planning that pranking superheroes required. Loki and Darcy had determined that they had to space the pranks out. They couldn’t have too many in a row, or else their victims might get it in their heads to retaliate. Darcy had objected to calling The Avengers ‘victims,’ but she found herself referring to them as such after their first success. Loki was definitely rubbing off on her.

Darcy shook out her hands as she walked down the hallway. She had been jittery all day. They had planned a prank to occur that evening. Darcy was particularly nervous, as the actual concept for the prank had been her idea. This was her baby. Her plan was gorgeous. Gorgeous, and evil, but mostly gorgeous. The beauty was in it’s simplicity. Darcy had nearly swallowed her tongue at the look Loki had given her when she first mentioned it. His eyes had been dark, and penetrating, and focused on her, with a concentration that must have rivaled that of a laser. It was a bit intense. Then his signature smirk appeared on his face, which gave way to a face splitting grin.

Loki passed her in the hallway and gave her a subtle nod. It was time. Darcy readjusted the strap on her purse. It was heavier than normal, as it held all the necessary ingredients for the plan. A hairdryer, a blowtorch, and a can of glitter infused hairspray. Darcy stopped just outside of Tony’s workshop and waited for the signal. A loud crash sounded from down the hall, and then Tony came running out of his workshop, muttering “God damn God of Mischief, never can get any work done anymore…” Thankfully, he was in such a hurry he didn’t even see her. Darcy ducked into Tony’s workshop when he rounded the corner and disappeared out of sight. Darcy moved quickly, setting out the hairspray, turning on the burner, and plugging in the hairdryer. She angled the hairdryer properly, and then quickly left the workshop.

She and Loki had designated a rendezvous spot, a hallway on the floor right underneath Tony’s workshop. Loki had arrived first, and was leaning against the wall. He had already queued up the screen on his new Stark phone to the security footage. Darcy leaned against the wall beside him just as an explosion sounded from above them. She turned her gaze to the phone. It was evident from the screen when suddenly smoke detectors started going off, and the fire protocols began in Tony’s lab. Darcy started cracking up at that, but quickly silenced herself as Tony rushed in, taking in the damage. There wasn’t any actual fire damage, but all of his equipment, including the Iron Man suit he had been working on, was covered in glitter.

Darcy clapped a hand over her mouth, and had nearly collapsed on to the floor of the hallway, trying to muffle her laughter. Loki wasn’t much better, leaning heavily against the wall, head leaned back against it, shoulders shaking from repressed laughter. Loki regained his composure first, and pulled Darcy to the stairwell to make their escape. Darcy tried not to think about how he almost looked attractive just then, his face all relaxed, and his body no longer holding the tension that seemed to almost radiate from him normally. They made their way down the stairwell, Darcy laughing the whole time, finally making it to an exit. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this chapter. A little more Loki and Darcy. More to come soon!


	6. Bandwidth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The measurement calculated in bits per second, to know the amount of data that can be sent through a connection.

_It was quiet. No, not just quiet. It was silent. Absolutely silent. But that wasn’t all. It was dark. So very dark. The kind of dark that was all encompassing. So complete in it’s darkness, so whole, and all embracing, that after a time, you began to imagine color and light played in it. Loki knew this kind of darkness well._

_Was he falling through the void again?_

_Or perhaps… still?_

_Had all of it… Thanos, the Chitauri, the scepter… had all of it been his deluded imaginings? A dream?_

_It almost made more sense.. How could he have pledged his allegiance to such a terrible being…?_

_He was the God of Lies, after all. How could he have been tricked? Who would dare to trick the Trickster?_

_The dark seemed to stretch on, and on, nothing but the great vastness of empty space. So empty, so alone still._

_Again._

_But he was not alone. There, there, in the darkness, there were shadows. They were blurry, wavering, never staying still. They were moving, slowly morphing, becoming shapes, outlines of figures, slowly coming into existence. Suddenly there was a voice._

_It had not all been in his mind, then._

_Not just a voice._

_His voice._

_“And what of the Dark Elves? Have they agreed to join my forces?” Thanos’ voice boomed, seeming to shatter the darkness, as suddenly Loki could see more clearly. There was still blurriness to the edges of his vision, but he could see the figures more evidently now. The Other. Chitauri. Frost Giants. All working together, forming a truly formidable force. They were preparing for battle. A battle against whom? Suddenly, he was face to face with Thanos’ gruesome face, pure rage red-hot in his eyes. The rage seemed to burn him. It was burning right through him!_

Loki woke up, sitting up straight in bed, gasping for breath. He tried desperately to calm his racing heart. It was just a nightmare. It was not real. Loki took a shaky inhale of breath through his nose. Thanos was far away. He would not have to worry about him for millennia yet.

He had time.

It was just a dream.

He had time.

He brought his shaking hands to his face, wiping the sweat from his forehead, and then rested his face against his cool palms. Why was he still consumed by nightmares? It had been months since he had been connected to Thanos through the scepter. Granted, it had been less time since he had been taken from Asgard in the middle of the night by Frost Giants and tortured for days.

Just before Odin had decided on his punishment, while he was still being held in a cell in the bowels of Asgard, a small force of Frost Giants had stole into the palace and taken him. They had kept him in agony for days, before Thor had finally rescued him. No. Not rescued. Retrieved him, and returned him to Asgard. The Frost Giants had not been working for Thanos, though, had they? Loki had just assumed that they had wanted retribution for his nearly destroying their planet. Certainly they would not align themselves with a creature such as Thanos? Surely they would see through his lies? But why should they? He, the God of Lies, certainly had not. No, Thanos had not only manipulated him, and told him precisely what he wanted to hear; he had then used that knowledge to control him. So why would the Jotun fair any better? That was not good news. If Thanos had a foothold in a realm as near as Jotunheim, he could make his way to Midgard, even without the power of the Tesseract.  

But wait. If he had only just realized that the Jotun were working with Thanos, then why had he been dreaming it for weeks?

Was it possible he was still connected to Thanos, even without the scepter?

Loki clenched his fists. He did not relish the though of sharing a connection with a creature as vile as Thanos. But if he did, and Thanos was building an army, it would not be long now before he made his move. If Thanos made his way here, to Midgard, this world would only be the first to suffer at his hands. He had failed Thanos, and he, along with the world that harbored him, would have to pay for that failure. Unless… Unless he could somehow keep Midgard from falling. He could not stand against Thanos alone. The very thought was ludicrous. He would need an army of his own, then. How could he assemble a force forbidding enough to defeat Thanos while trapped on Midgard, under The Avengers’ noses? It was impossible. There was no way to escape the close watch of his brother, let alone that of Heimdall.

But wait. His brother. His brother, and his stupid company of friends, The Avengers, they might be able to slow Thanos. Perhaps, if the timing was right, and with enough military strength behind them, they might even have a chance to stop him. It was a small chance. A very small chance. But it was his only hope. His existence, along with every creature in the realm, nay, all the realms, rested firmly on the shoulders of The Avengers.

Loki lay back down on the bed. He had a plan. It felt right, somehow, to finally have something to focus his calculating intelligence on, after so much time with nothing substantial to focus it on. He went over the facts, and began to flesh out exactly what his next move was going to be.

  1. He had a connection to Thanos in his mind, left over from the link the scepter had forged.
  2. Thanos was building an army, and he intended to come after Loki, and since Loki was on Midgard, it would be the first to fall. Unless someone stopped Thanos.
  3. Loki had to convince The Avengers to prepare to stop Thanos at his arrival.



**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got around to introducing the plot....


	7. Pulsar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rotating star or a pair of stars that emit electromagnetic radiation characterized by rapid frequency and regularity.

“Thor.”

No response.

“Thor.”

He did not respond. Again. Instead, Thor had shifted his head on the pillow, his arms coming up underneath it.

“Thor.” This time, Loki reached out and poked him in the middle of his forehead. He was reminded of how he and Thor used to awaken each other, as children. He shook his head slightly, as if to banish the memory, before repeating it.

“Loki…” Thor seemed to growl out, and then suddenly, his eyes popped open. “Loki!” He exclaimed, and sat up in the bed. Thankfully he was wearing some sort of sleeping clothes, Loki noted dryly.

“What is the matter, brother?”

“I am not your brother. I have information for you, but I think we best move this conversation to another room.” Loki answered as he turned and strode out of the bedroom and into Thor and Jane’s living space. Thor kissed Jane’s still sleeping head, and then followed.

Loki stood in the middle of the living room, obviously uncomfortable.

“What is it you wish to share with me, brother?”

Loki sighed, but did not even bother to correct Thor this time.

“You recall the Frost Giants that took me from Asgard?” He waited for Thor’s nod before continuing. “It appears that they were not working alone. They were, in fact, working for Thanos.” Loki waited for this information to sink in.

“Thanos was the being who made the scepter?” Thor asked.

Loki nodded. “He made the scepter, and it was entrusted to me. It appears to have forged a link between our minds, that has persevered even now that neither of us hold the scepter. This link has allowed me to see what Thanos is doing. He is forming an army, and he means to take Midgard, and then all the realms.”

Loki waited, as Thor seemed to think this over.

“How does the link work?”

“When I sleep, I dream of Thanos’ plans. I can see him, and the beginnings of his army.”

Thor nodded, as if this confirmed his thoughts. “How long do we have?”

“I am not exactly sure. He is trying to persuade the Dark Elves to join him, and I know not who else.”

“We need to inform Father. And Fury.”

Loki nodded. He had expected this.

\----

“An army?”

Loki was getting a bit exasperated at having to repeat himself to this mortal. Again.

“You are telling me that you somehow managed to cross an evil alien, and that you now need our help to get rid of him?” Fury asked.

Loki refrained from rolling his eyes. Barely.

“Yes. That is what I have been saying for the past half an hour.”

“No.”

“No? What do you mean, ‘no’?” It was Loki’s turn to need clarification.

“Just what I said. No. We are not going to stick our noses into your business. Its your fault that Thanos, or whoever is pissed. You fix it. Earth has to remain neutral.”

“You do not grasp the situation.” Loki said, emphatically. “Earth has already determined a side. Thanos is coming for Earth. And he does not mean to rule it. He means to destroy it.”

Fury raised his eyebrow, and then pressed a button on his desk, stooping to speak into some sort of speaker. “Assemble The Avengers. I’m calling a meeting.”

\----

Loki bit down on his tongue. He seemed to be doing quite a lot of that, lately. But he needed The Avengers. Unfortunately. They were not taking this seriously. He hardly needed to be able to read minds to know that theirs were wandering. Not that he couldn’t. The Allfather knew he could read minds, of course, but he was fairly certain that Thor did not. Why would he? The only aspect of Frost Giants that Thor had ever cared to know was in their name. It was not common knowledge that the Frost Giants were telepathic, and the skill had remained with him after he was stripped of his magic. Loki snorted derisively. How could he himself missed the oh so obvious signs of his true parentage? He had somehow managed to delude himself into thinking that all magic users could hear others thoughts at will. Only the most powerful of magic wielders could dip into others’ thoughts, and even then, it was more of an impression than actual thoughts. He had fooled himself into thinking that he had surpassed them all. He focused his attention back on the briefing that was occurring. The lack of attention in the room was astounding. And infuriating.

He kept his anger inside, his face growing blank, and more and more drawn as time went on. Fury briefed the insipid morons, covering only the most basic of details. He had brought not only The Avengers, but also Agent Hill, and Darcy, who was taking notes. They were in a meeting room, all seated around a large table. 

“What’s the big deal?” Tony suddenly interrupted.

Loki snapped. He stood so quickly, his chair fell over backwards. “Do you not understand the volume of the situation? Allow me to enlighten you.”

His gaze moved around the room, glaring down his nose.

“You do recall the chitauri? Well they are only the beginning. There is an army coming, the likes of which no one in all of the nine realms has ever faced, let alone you. Different races, warrior clans, legions of ferocious beasts, beings you cannot even imagine, all led by the single most formidable creature I have ever encountered in the whole of my very long existence. And they are all coming for this planet. They will lay waste. They will destroy all, without discrimination. Every life snuffed out. Every building reduced to ruins. Every ocean dry, and every forest flattened. And when they are finished, all that will remain is a burning pile of ash. That, my dear Avengers,” he sneered. “Is the ‘big deal.’”

He was met with absolute silence, all eyes and minds trained on him. Good.

\----

Darcy tried not to gulp as she swallowed. She was only in this -incredibly- frightening meeting because she had gotten a promotion. Or at least a promotion according to Fury. She was pretty sure it was just more work for the same pay. Darcy was beginning to rethink her earlier eagerness about being included in the briefing. This wasn’t awesome, as she had assumed it would be. This was fucking terrifying.

Loki was rattled, shaken, even.

And he had literally just silenced the room. A room, which held the strongest, smartest, most badass people on the planet, and all of them were absolutely silent. Not good.

“So uh, what’s the plan?” Darcy managed to squeak out, her voice unnaturally high. Somebody had to ask the tough questions, after all.

Loki pinned her with his gaze. Darcy met it and tried not to squirm

“The ‘plan’ is to fight.” He turned his gaze away from her and back to the others. Darcy tried not to slump in her chair in relief.

“And to win. If we are very, very fortunate.”

\----

 Fury wrapped up the meeting and waited for everyone to file out. When only Loki remained he asked, “Will you help?”

“How?” Loki scoffed. “My magic is gone.”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’ve been trained in combat for the past thousand years or so, right?”

Loki snorted softly.

“Your magic may be gone, but you’re still a damn good fighter.”

Loki raised an eyebrow. He had not known Fury held him in such esteem.

“And you know Thanos. You can help us figure out his moves, his plan of attack.”

“I do not pretend to know Thanos. I know only the cruelty, and manipulation he is capable of, but I will help. As best I can.” He answered, and then strode out of the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is posted a bit later than usual. I had an incredibly busy day, and this was my first opportunity to get online. Thanks to everyone who has commented, kudos'd, subscribed, or bookmarked! They are greatly appreciated.


	8. Decibel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The unit of measurement to estimate the loudness or volume of sound waves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Loki and Darcy have a difference of opinion.

“Hey.” Darcy said, as she flopped down on the couch next to Loki.

“Hello.” He responded, not looking away from television across the room. The news was on, but the volume was turned all the way down. Curse the gods, and their stupid superior physiology.

It was the middle of the day, but Darcy didn’t have any work to do. The revelation that Thanos was going to attack had actually slowed down the amount of paperwork that came her way. And Jane had been recruited to work on something that was supposed to block wormholes, a collaboration with Tony, and Bruce, so she didn’t see much of her either. It seemed like everyone else was working hard at their important jobs, trying to prepare for Thanos. Apparently there was only so much sparring Loki could do a day to stay in shape, and besides that, there was not much he could do to help while conscious. He only had insight into Thanos’ plans while he slept. So when he wasn’t in the weekly meeting with Fury, or sparring with The Avengers, there wasn’t actually that much for him to do.

“Done already?”

“Yes. Apparently, I am not a good sparring partner when I am surrounded by stupidity.” Loki pressed a button on the remote and turned off the television. 

“You’ll have to work on that, then. I’ve noticed that for an organization that is supposed to be made up of genius level intellects, there is a lot of stupidity floating around here. I mean, between the ego of Stark Industries, and the box-checker mentality that runs rampant at SHIELD, I’m surprised anything gets done.”

“And these are the people to whom our fates are entrusted.”

Darcy let out a snort, and then crossed herself. “May God have mercy.”

“Only if you beg.” Loki said, arching his brow at her.

“Not you!” Darcy exclaimed laughingly, as she smacked his arm lightly.

“Please, do be more specific next time.”

“How does that even work, then? I mean, you all came down to Earth to battle the Frost Giants, and then when the Norse started to worship you, you just took it and ran? Like, what kind of egotistical, portentous people would actually encourage the worship of their race as gods?”

Loki’s first instinct was to put the mortal in her place. They were far superior to Midgardians in almost every way, after all. But after the initial rush of disdain, and a moment of thought, he found himself agreeing with her statement. “Egotistical would be a good word for it.”

“Well, that is to be expected from a monarchial society.” Darcy said, but then bit her lip, wishing she had a brain-mouth filter for about the millionth time in her life.

“Oh?” Loki said, and Darcy heard the change in his tone, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself from answering.

“Yeah, I mean, just look at any monarchy in the world, there’s like this superiority complex about the whole thing. Like just because you were born in the right family you’re magically better than everyone else.” She should shut up. She really should shut up, if Loki’s carefully blank face was anything to go by. Not that that ever stopped her before.

“You do not approve of monarchies?” Loki asked, trying to keep the acidity out of his tone.

“Well, as a style of ruling, there are just a lot of problems with it. Like succession, for example. It’s hereditary. Like, what makes you qualified to be competent in governing an entire nation? Nothing, except you know, I was born into the royal family. So, I mean, that’s the biggest problem, obviously. But then there’s also the sense of entitlement, and unimpeachable status. Like, they are gonna rule until they die, and there is literally nothing you can do about unless you have a revolution. And people won’t revolt unless they have someone to lead it, and the authoritarianism that comes naturally to a lot of monarchs will ensure that all of the opponents are struck down at the slightest indication of a revolution. And even if you do somehow manage to have a revolution, the royal family is almost always backed by like this huge ass military, which means a lot of people die, so maybe it’s just better to hold out for the king to die, and hope that his son is a better ruler than he was.” Darcy finished, slightly out of breath.

Loki tried to quell his anger. As the seconds of silence ticked by, Darcy began to look panicked, her eyes shifting, and her hands playing with her sweater, but she didn’t say anything further. He pressed into her thoughts, interested to see what she thought he was going to do.

_Shit, Darcy, why can’t you keep your mouth shut just once? Oh, God, he looks offended. No shit, of course he’s offended, you just figuratively attacked him, his entire family, their government, and society! If I get through this I am buying myself a brain-mouth filter off Amazon… Oh, God. He is coming up with a punishment right now! He is going to kill me._

Loki was startled when he was met with an image of his face, his look intent, but not murderous, as she had surmised. He extricated himself from her thoughts, and said, “You make valid points.”

The look of surprise on her face made Loki wish that he could capture it. He loved surprising people, and that was the exact reason why.

“I do? I mean, I do.” Darcy said quickly.

“Of course. I, more than most, know the faults of the monarchy.”

“Really?” Darcy asked, skeptically, mindful of his history.

“Of course,” Loki said as he stood. He grinned, and then said,  “That is why I would rule Midgard as your dictator.”

Darcy’s mouth dropped open in shock as he swept out of the room. She didn’t know why she was shocked. After all, the guy had tried to take over the world. But that had been months ago. Surely, his opinions have changed, however slightly, since then?

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I am posting so late. I'm pretty sure this chapter is riddled with errors, but I can't be bothered to proof it anymore. Point 'em out if they are terrible, please. :)


	9. Particle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A very small piece of an indivisible object.

Darcy knew that she was too loud, and overly talkative, and sometimes obnoxious. She was full of witticisms, snark, and sarcastic comments. She put on a carefree smile, and a cheerful face, but it was all a farce. It was a defense. She covered up how broken and leery she was of the world with a huge facade. And it worked, for the most part. Except for when she met the God of Lies. He _saw_. He could tell exactly who she was, what she was hiding, from a single look. Her cover was blown. He knew. He knew. He knew. And she didn’t know how she felt about that. Actually, she was pretty sure she should hate it. Being open and vulnerable to anyone, let alone the God of _Lies_. But she didn’t. She didn’t hate it. She felt… relieved. Relieved that finally _finally_ someone knew who she truly was. How illegitimate she felt here at Stark Tower. Like someone was going to walk in at any second saying, “There’s been a mistake.” And send her packing.

She was pretty good, for the most part, at hiding it, how much she felt she didn’t belong. She covered it up with her biting sarcasm. She buried herself behind her glasses, hats, and bulky sweaters. She hid behind her phone, and created a shield with her headphones.  She isolated herself before others had a chance to.

She’d always had trouble making friends, boys had just stared once she hit puberty, and girls didn’t want to hang out with her for the very same reason. That was why she was a bit unsure about her current situation. Who would have thought that she, of all people, would befriend Loki?  But then again, Loki seemed like he knew a lot about psychological defenses.

It was astonishing, how well they got along. She had never met someone who could rival her in sarcasm, or biting wit, and yet Loki didn’t only meet her, he challenged her. She had never had what she had with Loki with anyone else. This level of camaraderie, and dare she say- closeness? It was stupid, probably, to get this close to a being as volatile as Loki, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. They just fit, and she wasn’t going to question it. They were both outcasts in this Superhero Infused World they were living in, and for some reason, it had allowed for the most unlikely of friendships to occur. Determined to shake herself from her sudden introspective mood, Darcy began to hum as she made herself some French toast.

\----

Darcy was in the kitchen, humming to herself, seemingly deep in thought as she made her breakfast. Loki heard her bustling as he made his way down the hall. He leaned against the doorway of the kitchen. Her back was to him, and she seemed to be swaying her hips in unison to whatever song filled her head. It was quite a sight he had to admit. Darcy was attractive, for a mortal, he supposed. With her surplus of curves, and smooth, pale skin, she was very tempting.

Loki realized that Darcy still had not registered his presence. She was still humming loudly, and flipping the French toast on the griddle. He slunk forward, without making a sound; he didn’t need magic to be quiet, after all. He stopped directly behind her, and simultaneously placed his palms on her hips, and whispered into her ear, “Gotcha!”

Darcy jumped, bumped back into his chest, and let out a half-stifled scream. Loki quickly took a step back, to give her space as Darcy whirled to face him. Her breathing had accelerated, and Loki could hear her heart racing. Her eyes were wide as she took him in, and then pushed past him to the other side of the kitchen.

“Darcy?” He asked. It seemed his mischief had backfired. He had only meant to startle her, but she seemed to be truly frightened.

She had sunk to the floor, and was shaking. Her breathing was coming in loud gasps, and her eyes were clenched, shut tight.

“Darcy?” Loki asked again. He stepped toward her, arm outstretched, but Darcy suddenly opened her eyes. “Don’t!”

Although unused to following orders, something in her voice made Loki freeze.

“Don’t… Don’t touch me.” Darcy stammered out, closing her eyes again. It was obvious that she was trying to calm herself by slowing down her breathing, but Loki wasn’t certain how effective it was being.

“Darcy, what is the matter?” He lowered his voice, and channeled as much calmness in to it as he could. Which, admittedly, wasn’t much, but it seemed to work, as Darcy’s breathing slowed. He crouched next to her, and extended his hand out to her. He didn’t touch, but his hand hovered just above her shoulder. Her hands were shaking, and her eyes were still clamped shut, but her breathing had returned to normal. After a moment her hands stopped shaking, and then she opened her eyes. She looked up at Loki, and gave him a small, self-deprecating smile. She began to stand, and Loki quickly put his other hand in front of her, palm up, offering it to her to take, if she chose. She took it, after a moments pause, and stood slowly, but dropped it as soon as she had her footing.

“Are you… alright?” Loki queried again. His gaze flicked over her.

“Uh, yeah. Well, no. But yeah, I’m fine.”

“That was succinct.”

Darcy huffed out a laugh. “That’s my middle name.” She leaned back against the counter, and turned her gaze to the ceiling. Loki waited for her to answer. He had asked his question, and the wordsmith was not one to waste words. Silence filled the room for several minutes, until Darcy spoke suddenly, her voice quiet. “I… I had a panic attack.”

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I missed last week! I have been really busy these past few weeks, and stressed to the point where any creativity seems quite beyond my reach. I will do my best to keep updating once a week though.


	10. Neutron Star

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The endpoint of the life of a massive star that explodes into a supernova that consists of mainly neutrons.

_“I… I had a panic attack.”_

Loki remained silent, indicating for her to continue.

“It, uh, triggered me when you snuck up behind me.”

She took a slow breath, and blew it out through her teeth.

“What happened?” Loki asked. He might have a silver-tongue, but it seemed to have taken leave of him the moment Darcy had begun to hyperventilate. Thankfully, Darcy didn’t seem to mind his brusque question. “Well, it all…“ Her voice stuck, and she cleared it loudly, and with a hint of frustration before continuing. “It all started after Puente Antiguo.”

Loki’s mouth went dry, and a pressure materialized in his chest.  Darcy cast her eyes downward, and rubbed her hands up and down her upper arms, a gesture in between warming and comforting herself. “After the uh, Giant Robot of Death demolished the city….” Her voice broke, and then went silent.

The pressure in Loki’s chest seemed to rise up, moving into his throat, threatening to choke him, but he did not allow his face to betray it.

“I started having panic attacks.” Darcy said, after a moment. “I had to go see a shrink, and he told me I had PTSD, that’s Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, but you know, knowing what to call it helped about as much as you might think. I’m a lot better now then I used to be though. Used to be that anything- loud noises, if I was startled, left alone for too long….”

Darcy cleared her throat. “But now, uh, they happen very rarely.”

Loki nodded his understanding.

“So, uh, sorry about freaking out on you.”

Loki abruptly stopped nodding at that. “Do not apologize. If anything, I should apologize to you.”

It didn’t escape Darcy’s notice that he didn’t actually apologize, but she was going to treat it like one anyways.

“Uh, well apology accepted.” 

“Breakfast?” Loki abruptly changed the subject, and moved to fix a plate.

Darcy smiled as she began to fix her own plate. She hadn’t told anyone about her panic attacks besides her therapist, and she was surprised at how relieved she felt to have it out in the open. And while normally a panic attack had the potential to ruin the rest of her day, Loki distracted her with a story, and before she knew it, her panic attack was all but forgotten. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is so short. This last quarter of school is kicking my ass. The good news is only two more weeks of class. After that, I plan on updating much more regularly. Thank you for sticking with me. Hopefully I didn't offend anyone with my portrayal of a panic attack, and hopefully this chapter cleared things up a bit.


	11. Triboluminescence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An optical phenomenon in which light is generated through the breaking of chemical bonds in a material when it is ripped apart.

Darcy let herself into Loki’s apartment after work, as had become their custom over the past few months. It was his turn to cook dinner, and she was starving.

“Loki, what’s for dinner?” She called as she shucked off her boots, and dropped her bag in the entryway.

“Pasta.”

Darcy entered the kitchen, and stopped short. Loki was facing the stove, stirring some sort of sauce. His hair was dripping wet, obviously just out of the shower, and he hadn’t put on a shirt yet. She was thankful he couldn’t see her face, as she stared at his tightly muscled back. She headed towards the fridge, and grabbed herself a soda. She shut the door, and then leaned back against it to stare at his back. Now that she was closer, she could see a large scar marked his skin.

She kept herself from touching it, but just going by appearances, it didn’t seem to be raised. The scar was lighter than his skin, which should have been considered a feat, really, considering how pale his skin was. The scar began on his right shoulder blade, and seemed to wrap around his back, weaving back and forth, until it disappeared around the curve of his left hip, and was lost at the band of his pants.

“How did you get that?” Darcy asked, not even trying not to stare at the scar that seemed to snake across his back without a discernable pattern. She hopped up on a stool that was situated near the island in the center of the room.

“Hmm?” Loki asked, as he stirred.

“The scar.”

“Which one?”

Darcy’s eyebrows came together in confusion, but then, after taking a closer look, she noticed a small, raised, and puckered looking scar in the middle of his ribcage on the left side of his back. “Oh. The big one.”

Loki looked over his right shoulder, and down, where he could see the start of the scar. “I received that particular souvenir a very long time ago.” He said, as he turned back to the stove. “Thor had just received Mjolnir, and was still learning how to use it.”

“Didn’t you get Mjolnir for him?” Darcy interrupted.

Loki’s cheek twitched before he responded. “Yes. Now don’t interrupt.” He admonished.

Darcy just rolled her eyes at his back after he resumed stirring. “I had just won Mjolnir for Thor, and he had not yet learned how to control the weapon. He had particular trouble mastering the lightning.”

Loki stirred the sauce, and then dumped the pasta into the boiling pot on the other burner. “You got that from getting hit by lightning?!”

Instead of rebuking her, he just turned his head, and raised a brow. Darcy gestured for him to continue as she shoved a piece of bread into her mouth.

“Yes, I got hit by a stray bolt. I have regretted my gift to him on more than one occasion, but that was probably the time when I lamented it the most. Needless to say, after the sting wore off, I did return the favor, in my own way.”

“Sting? Most humans who get struck by lighting are killed.”

Loki didn’t even bother to turn around that time.

“Right, ‘God.’”

Darcy finished chewing her bread, and swallowed it. “What about the other one? The small one on your back?”

“I was near impaled by Sif’s sword once.”

“She stabbed you?”

“Well, to be fair, I did deserve it. Mostly.”

“What did you do? Snake in her bed?”

“No, I cut off all of her hair.”

“What? Why?”

“Sif hated me. I hated her. She loved her hair. I cut it off.”

“That makes zero sense.”

“It made sense at the time.”

“How come it left a scar? Special metal?” Darcy asked.

“Trying to determine how to kill a God?” Loki asked, amused.

“No, just curious.” Darcy returned.

“She used her best blade. And I didn’t have any armor on. Or a shirt, actually. She caught me quite by surprise.”

“I’m surprised she didn’t get a double.” Darcy said.

“I was quite young. I hadn’t yet learned how to control shades yet. Or at least, not well enough to try to conjure one in a moment of distress.” Loki strained the pasta, and dished up a plate, placing it in front of Darcy before getting one for himself.

Darcy smiled. Loki had come a long way since he had arrived at Stark Tower. He could actually feed himself now, for one thing.

“This is great.” Darcy said after taking a large bite. “Do you have any other scars?”

Loki had sat down across the island from her. He gestured towards a thin, pale line just under his left pectoral. “Dwarf dagger.” Then he stretched back, and pointed to a large mark that took up quite a bit of his right ribcage. “Bilgesnipe hunt. Suffice to say, Thor did not ‘have it on the run.’”

Darcy cocked an eyebrow.

“Antlers.”

“Ahh.”

Then, hopping off the stool, he pulled the waistband of his pants down slightly.  Darcy tried not to widen her eyes at the sight of his hipbones.

He pulled the material back just far enough to show what looked like a burn on the inside of his hip. “A nasty confrontation with a Fire Giant.”

He sat back down. “I showed you mine, now you show me yours.” Darcy laughed. Loki had taken to innuendo surprisingly quickly.

“Well none of mine were inflicted by a Fire Giant, but I’ll share.” She turned her arm to show the inside of her elbow. “I went off the road when I was sixteen, because of some black ice. Six stitches.”

She then hopped off her stool, and pulled up her skirt slightly to reveal her knees. “I wrecked my bike an unbelievable amount as a child.” Both of her knees were covered in light brown scars. She hitched up her skirt on one side, and revealed her lower thigh. There were three long lines across it.

“This is where I got attacked by a mountain lion.” She waited a moment, judging his face. “Not really but that’s what I tell everyone. I actually got caught in a rose bush once, and for some reason, the thorns leave really nasty scars.” She dropped her skirt, and then rolled up the sleeve of her shirt to reveal the top of her right arm. She pointed to a thin line that stretched horizontally across her bicep. “This is a knife cut, from my mugging.” She rolled the sleeve down. “That’s the reason I got my taser, actually.”

She turned around, and hoisted up her shirt, showing the bottom edge of her bra strap. There was a white splotch just underneath it, on the left side of her back. “And this is where my brother, being the little shit that he is, hit me in the back with a rock.”

“And you did absolutely nothing to provoke him.”

“Well, I might have pushed him off the dock.”

“Might have.”

“Definite maybe. There was no proof it was me, after all. He’s notoriously clumsy.”

At that, Loki smiled, and took a bite of pasta. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What is this? An update? From me? 
> 
> I know it's been a while guys. Thanks for sticking with me. Already mostly done with the next chapter, which should be up next Monday. Thanks for putting up with me while I finished school. :D
> 
> Kudos, comments, subscriptions, and bookmarks make me a very happy person, and thanks to all who do!


	12. Plumes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The hot, feather-like rising gas in the atmosphere of a star or planet that is due to convection.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was inspired when I heard that the Fourth of July was also Captain America's birthday, so I wrote this. Here, have a bit of Steve.

“Stevie!” Darcy called as he exited the conference room after a meeting.

“Darcy.” He stopped, and smiled at her.

“Where you headed?” She asked.

“Stark wants to see me in his workshop. Something about improvements to the uniform.”

“Ah. I’ll walk with you.” Darcy said, and then hooked his arm with hers and began to pull him in the right direction.

Steve just smiled and followed her lead.

“So, Stevie…”

“Steve.” He corrected.

“So, Stevie.” Darcy said. “How are things going with you and Beth?”

Steve licked his lips before he answered. “Good.”

Darcy raised her brows. “Good?”

“Yes, good.”

“Steve, I do not set up people for ‘good’ results. What’s the problem? Bad manners? Too soon? No chemistry?”

He looked back over his shoulder, and Darcy followed his gaze, only seeing an empty hallway.

“Darcy, no! Beth and I have great chemistry.” He said after he saw it was just the two of them.

 “I’m glad to hear that Jane isn’t the only one doing some "science" around here.” She said with an eyebrow waggle. 

Darcy grinned as Steve rolled his eyes at her innuendo.

“I thought you two would get along well. I’m glad to hear it’s working out.” She said honestly.

“She’s really great, though, Darcy. I don’t know how to thank you for introducing us.” He said, as they arrived in front of Tony’s workshop.

Darcy unhooked her arm from his, and began to head back up to her floor. “I accept payment in the form of Dove chocolate bars, and caramel frappuccinos!” She called over her shoulder. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all are having a marvelous week, and remember to be safe on this holiday!


End file.
